Vehicle-controller.



C. T. HENDERSON.

VEHICLE CONTROLLER. APPLICATION FILED DEC-13,1913.

911 UL Patented Sept. 4,1917.

onsgak r. nnivnnnsoiv, or MILWAUKEE,

* r o it t:

WISCONSIN, ASSIGINOB. -".I. THE CUTLER.-

HAMMEE MFG. CO., OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF WISCONSIN.

VEHICLE-CONTROLLER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 4L, 1191?.

Application filed December 13, 1913. Serial No. 806,395.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLAR T. HENDERSON,

I a citizen of the United States, residing at cise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relates to controllers for electric vehicles and the like.

Such vehicles are commonly equipped with mechanical brakes adapted to be set and locked, and it frequently occurs that a careless operator will set and lock the brakes without first setting the power controller in an off or some other safe position. This, of course, is very undesirable and apt to prove exceedingly dangerous should the brakes he accidentally released or released without realization of the circuit conditions.

, This invention has among its objects to provide means for insuring against setting and locking of the brakes of such vehicles without a first setting of the controller in 0d position, or some other safe position.-

-A turtherobject is to provide means for the aforesaid purpose which will allow use.

of the brakes while the power controller is in a running position. 1

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter appear.

In practice, the invention may be embodied in various diflierent forms, such as that schematically illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing which embodiment is particularly applicable to electric vehicles.

The drawing shows schematically a power controller 1 which it may be assumed is an electrical controller, a conventional form of brake 2 and a foot lever 3 for operation of the brake together with one form ofinterlocking means for the brake lever and controller.

Referring first to the foot lever, the same is pivoted upon a spindle 4 and has associated therewith an independently movable rack disk 5 also mounted upon said spindle The lever d is movable tothe left to apply the brake 2 and to the right to release said brake. The disk 5 has on periphery two sets of oppositely disposed rack teeth 6 and 7 preferably arranged side-by-side and extending entnely around said dish. The

' teeth 6 are arrangedtobe engaged by a pivoted pawl 8 carried by the lever 3 while the teeth 7 are arranged to be engaged by a fixed pivoted pawl 9. The arrangement is such that the pawl 8 and teeth 6 lock the lever against clockwise movement relative to the disk while the pawl 9 when in engagement with the teeth 7 looks the disk against clockwise movement. Thus, with the disk 5 looked as just described against clockwise movement, it acts as a locking rack for the lever 3 to maintain the brake applied. The release of the lever from the rack may be accomplished in various difierent Ways, as by the provision on said lever of a pivoted foot plate 10 and a connection 11 between said foot plate and pawl 8. With this arrangement a spring 12 is preferably provided to yieldingly press the pawl into on gagement with the locking teeth.

As will now be described, if the pawl 9 is withdrawn from engagement with the teeth 7 both the disk 5 and the lever 3 will be freed and accordingly the brake will be re leased. Consequently, so long as the pawl 9 is held out of engagement with the teeth 7, the lever 3 cannot be locked in braking position. The pawl 9, as will now be de- A scribed, is governed by the master controller.

in such a manner as to lock the disk 5 only in a predetermined position of said controller. In all other positions of the controller the pawl 9 is maintained out of enpawl 9 is connected by link 13 to a bell-crank lever 14 carrying at one end a roller 15 cooperating with a cam 16 movable with the controller 1 through any suitable connection .17. The cam 16 is of such form as to positively-withdraw the pawl 9 from holding position through the medium of the bell gagement with the teeth 7. To this end the crank lever, when the controller is in any but a predetermined position. Wen, however, the controller is in said predetermined position, the roller on the bell crank lever enters a notch in the cam which frees the V pawl 9 for engagement with the teeth 7, the

- Further, the arrangement enables release of the brake either by tilting of the foot plate, as above set forth, or by merely operating the controller. In the latter event one operation is eliminated in starting.

' Still further, the arrangement enables the vehicle to be started by the foot lever if desired. This may be readily accomplished by holding the foot lever, then setting the controller in the desired position and finally releasing the foot lever.

It should, of course, be understood that various. modifications may be made in the arrangement illustrated without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an electric vehicle, in combination, a pivoted brake operating lever, a ratchet member pivoted co-axially with said lever but rotatable independently thereof, a pawl carried by said lever and cooperable with Q said member to lock the latter against relasitely disposed ratchet teeth, a pawl carried by said lever and cooperable with one set of said ratchet teeth to lock said lever against movement relative to said disk in one direction, a second pawl cooperable with the other set of ratchet teeth to lock said disk against movement in the same direction, and a circuit controller for the vehicle governing said second pawl and operable to efi'ect locking of said disk thereby only when the supply circuit of the vehicle is interrupted.

, In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

CLARK T. HENDERSON.

Witnesses H. A. SnnowIcK, ELIZABETH G. HAHEN. 

